


A single Card

by Blutkatze



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: M/M, Puzzleshipping, Short Story, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-25
Updated: 2017-04-11
Packaged: 2018-10-10 13:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10439034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blutkatze/pseuds/Blutkatze
Summary: It's valentines day, and Yugi received more cards than he expected - with one card drawing his attention the most.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everybody,
> 
> I got the idea for this story while I was learning in the library on valentines day, but I already knew that I wouldn't make it to upload this on the same day. So I took my time and finished this story before I uploaded it. It was planned as a One-Shot, but it got too long and now I'm publishing it as a short story. I don't know how many chapters it will have, maybe 2 or 3 + epilogue. I will think about this later :)
> 
> For those who are reading my other fic "Homecoming" - I'm nearly finished with the next 2 chapters, but I will continue to work on it after my last test at the beginning of april. I'm so sorry that I won't be able to upload earlier T_T
> 
> Thanks to the wonderful King of Doors for betareading ♥ You helped me so much and gave me ideas and courage in writing, thank you!
> 
> And now have fun reading!
> 
> Sunny

It was this day again. Every year it would return and it showed to you gracefully that you weren't as happy as some other people around you.

While I walked up to the classroom happy students passed me on the corridor; laughing, flirting, holding hands or exchanging little gifts. The school was decorated with lightly pink and red balloons and some lockers had small love letters attached to it. I would bet that most of them wouldn't have a name on them – so many don't want to let their crush know from who this letter was from.

It was Valentine's Day. And it sucked.

I entered my class and looked around. A small group of girls were giggling together over a badly written valentines card, while others sat in the back and where planning romantic activities with their significant others. Guys were shyly looking to the pretty girls and hoped that they won't be rejected.

And then there were those students like me and my friends that won't give anything to this day. Well… sort of.

"Welcome back, Yugi!" Anzu cheered as I walked up to my table. She looked at me with interesting eyes. "Received any love letters on the corridor?" I just snorted at her.

"As if…" I simply said and sat down next to my best friend. "Even if they would've given them to me, it was only to bring them to you" I said and looked at him.

He just shrugged. "And as every time, I would throw them away after reading them."

"Aw Yami, you're so mean! You're breaking hearts here, you know" said Honda who turned around and looked at him. "I would feel honored if I received a love letter! It means that someone is thinking more about you than anything else and-"

"Good morning class!" Mrs Imuchi said as she entered the room and interrupted Honda's lecture immediately. Some of my classmates groaned while others – mostly girls – chimed at her equally.

I was in the group who groaned.

"I hope you all brought your valentines cards with you!" she said and picked up a box and placed it on her table. "If so, please come up here one by one and throw them in. I hope you remembered the rules that you don't need to confess your undying love to somebody in this class, but merely give a compliment to them. So everybody will hear something nice on the day of lovers."

While she got out her list and read the names aloud I reached for my backpack. "How many cards have you written?" Yami whispered loudly as he looked at his envelope.

"I got two. Didn't feel like making more compliments. And you?" I said with a slightly shaking voice. If he would know…

"I only have one. But well – more than last year" he smirked as he looked at me. Right after that Mrs Imuchi read out his name and he went to the front to throw his envelope in the box.

The terms for this little "game" were easy. As she already explained it wasn't necessary to write a confession on the card. A small compliment was totally ok and it wasn't a big deal either. But to keep it still a secret the cards needed to be written on the computer; no one should recognize someone's handwriting. And to finally make sure that nobody would read his or her letter beforehand, everybody had to put their cards in a simple unaddressed envelope, and put a printed out name on it just before you would throw it into the box, so even Mrs Imuchi wouldn't know who gave whom which letter.  
All in all it was a good strategy to give comfort to the authors and to the receivers.

But it was still a valentine's card.

"Mutou, Yugi" she read aloud and with slightly shaking hands I walked up to the front.  
I didn't exactly lie as I told Yami that I didn't felt like making more compliments. In fact, I didn't write compliments.

The first letter was addressed to Anzu. I met her eyes just before I put my envelope into the box. With a silent sigh I watched as it reached the bottom and joined the other envelopes. I wrote her a… confession, but not one you normally get on a valentine's day.

_'I used to have a crush on you. But now you're a really close friend and I'm happy to be called one of yours too.'_

Right, I HAD a crush on her. But after the events of the last years I'm quite sure it was gone.

Someone… new stole my heart. And it was bigger than my crush I had on her.

I looked at my current crush as I turned around and walked back to my table. He smiled and winked at me. I smiled back, but within me a small storm of fluffy feelings broke loose; like every time I looked at you.

It all started when Yami and his father moved to Domino after his mother passed away. His father and my grandpa were close friends and also did some research together as the Sennens still lived in Egypt. When I was a child, my parents travelled along with my grandpa and we lived some days with the Sennens. There I met Yami.

A little bit bigger and older, he teased me here and there, but was also protecting me when we were at the market or outside the house. "Keep care of him like he is your younger brother" his father Aknamkanon told him back then, and he did. After we left Egypt the contact never really broke, but ironically it died down as his family was moving to Japan after his mother got sick. My grandpa visited them as much as it was possible, but they lived near Tokyo and it was difficult for him to travel there. At the beginning, I wasn't interested in visiting them; I liked to play games more. But as it was a sad truth that Yami's mother would die my grandpa brought me to accompany him. It was nearly 12 years after I last saw him, and I was overwhelmed by what he had become. I had never believed in love at first sight, but here I witnessed it.

I tried to surpass my crush; Yami was going through a really hard time preparing for his mother's death and I just wanted to be there for him. At his first glance he didn't recognized me, later telling me that I look more mature then he expected. His teasing here and there never ended, and never changed.

From that day on we became inseparable. I introduced him to the game 'Duel Monsters' and we played as much as we could. Every time I visited him he challenged me to a duel, showing me his new cards and discussing strategies with me. We also played other games, or went out to the arcade and got something to eat. But we never were out long, so we could spend some time with his family. And when gramps and me drove home, we stayed in contact over the phone. Because of his situation Yami had a tutor at home, so he would be there if anything would happen. For him it wasn't a problem to write a message or call me during brakes if he wanted to speak with me. For me it often ended that I needed to pick up my phone after class from the teacher's desk…  
It changed though when his mother needed to stay in hospital. When we visited, we stayed all the time there, chatting and dueling in the waiting area or eating all together at his mother's hospital bed. We tried to be positive around her when she was weak and tried to help as much as we can. Yami and I stayed behind, playing a small game with her or watched a movie on TV while my grandpa and Aknamkanon went back to their apartment to look after it. In the evening Yami read to his mother her favorite novels, lulling her to sleep. I caught myself too often to fall in a trancelike state, admiring his smooth voice and get lost in dreamland. But I didn't allow me this much; being with his dead sick mother and him in one room I felt uncomfortable to have such daydreams. The nights were now the only time where we stayed at the Sennens. While I slept with Yami in one room, my grandpa resided in the guestroom. I noticed that Yami couldn't sleep much in those nights, having nightmares or dark thoughts running through his head. He shared them with me, and we talked until dawn about the inevitable, or how my parents died some years after their last visit to Egypt. To loosen the atmosphere, we talked about games, movies or I told him something about my friends. Even when we needed to go back to Domino he sometimes called during the night, seeking comfort and distraction from this darkness building up in his heart. It broke my heart every time I realized he had been crying or was still sobbing on the phone. It left me with a longing to hug him – even if it reminds me of my dark times.  
One day I got an invitation for a Duel Monsters tournament. By now Yami was equal to my skill, not losing that often anymore and playing more and more draws. I was allowed to bring one more duelist with me, but he declined because of his mother.

"I will watch on TV how you defend your title, aibou" he said with a sad smile as I travelled to Duelist Kingdom with Jounouchi and my other friends as backup.

Shortly after the tournament, his mother died. Because of the new development of our friendships – not only me and Yami became close, but also Aknamkanon and my grandpa - she was buried at the graveyard in Domino, for it was clear that the Sennens would move here. The funeral was still hard, even if they knew that this day would come, but the Sennens stood there strong together; me and grandpa not far away from them.

The moving happened around Christmas two years ago. After that, I couldn't help myself anymore… I tried everything to forget my feelings for him; forced them on Anzu and hoping that Yami would only be my best friend. But nothing helped. We were basically glued to each other together every minute of the day; to see one of us alone was nearly impossible. He wanted to attend my High School and luckily it worked. We shared the same classes and activities, and if I wasn't seen with him I was asked if something bad had happened. After school, he would come to my place if grandpa needed help with the shop or we would stay at his place to play and learn. Either he was sleeping at my place or vice versa. Aknamkanon and my grandpa did their jokes that we should move in altogether, so we won't need to separate ever again.

Did it sound funny when I say that I really liked that idea?

Jounouchi was a bit jealous of how much time I spent with Yami, telling me that I was his best bud, but would rather hang out with Yami than him. But after some time and especially some group activities, Yami was introduced into the gang and welcomed as a dear friend.

But not for me. After all this time, he grew into something more. I failed in ignoring my crush for him, and it increased with every day I saw him smile, hear him laugh, felt him near…  
Lately he appeared in a dream for the first time. It was a pleasant dream and it made me incredible happy – until I woke up and realized, that he wasn't my lover, even if he was lying next to me. I believed it was the first time I cried over him. As he saw me like this I lied, telling him it was a nightmare. He comforted me and held me in his arms…

The next night he appeared again, and I didn't cry visibly after I woke up. My insides twisted from the bittersweet feeling those dreams caused. I wasn't sure if I wanted them to stop or not…

_'You're haunting my dreams and I don't want to wake up'_

We shared one last look after I sat down before Mrs Imuchi started class.


	2. Chapter 2

"Alright class. While you do some silent work, I will hand you your cards!” Mrs Imuchi announced. Again, a wave of groaning and giggling went through the class, but our teacher just smiled and stood up from her desk, going silently from table to table. From the corner of my eyes I could see that Honda and Jounouchi got cards as well as Anzu. Thankfully none of my friends would be forgotten on valentine’s day.

Yami right next to me got a couple of cards. I didn’t hide my amusement as we shared a quick look. I knew that he was popular among the girls and even the boys the first time he entered the school ground. I wasn’t joking as I said that I mainly got letters from girls with the kind question to hand them to my best friend. In the beginning, it wasn’t much, but the longer he was in school the more letters came to him. But he reacted to every single one the same way: he read it, packed it away and threw it in the trash can when we got home.

Occasionally, girls and some guys circled me to ask me questions about him, to tell me gossip they heard or wanted a confirmation that he was still single. It creeped the hell out of me and I was so relieved when Yami came across and “saved” me.

Fans could be unnerving.  
  
My thoughts were interrupted as Mrs Imuchi laid down three cards in front of me. She smiled at me and then walked to the next student.

Three cards? For me?

Wow…

Last year I only got one, and this was one was challenging me to a duel. So maybe I had more opponents then I thought, or I was lucky and got a compliment?

“Read them” Yami whispered eagerly next to me. He hadn’t touched his cards until now, but was surprised as I was when it came to my cards. I turned the first around and read its short message.  
  
_‘I admire your strategy skills. Hope to duel you soon!’_  
  
A half smile came onto my face. So that was my first challenger. Bet the other two won’t be better…  
  
_‘You have beautiful eyes’_  
  
I blushed at this one lightly – I really got a compliment! Even though I wished for it, I definitely hadn’t counted on that. Yami got curious why I was looking at that card so long and took a glimpse. It took him a second before he smiles at me, and quickly after that he was busy reading his own cards in his elegant way. I admire how fluent his moves were, how he picked up one card after another… But it was strange that he acted so… hesitantly?

Curiously I looked at my last card. Trying not to be hasty, I picked it up and turned around, reading its lines.  
  
_‘You brighten my every day, and that’s why I love you’_  
  
I… what?  
  
Was that really… stood there… Was someone really… confessing to me?

Like a fish on land my mouth closed and opened. I couldn’t believe it! Never would I have guessed that someone…  
  
A dark thought came to my mind, and a sad sigh came from me as I put that card to the others.  
  
Maybe it was just a prank. Yeah, that would be reasonable. Who in all worlds would fall for me?

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Yami asked as he saw my face. I just shook my head and packed my cards away. I mouthed a ‘later’ to him and kept on reading the text Mrs Imuchi gave us for silent work.

I needed to focus on something else.  


* * *

 

“So, how many cards did you get Jounouchi?”  
  
As always, we met up after school at our favorite restaurant – Burger World! Anzu worked here - with official permission from school - and we accompanied her there and spend time together until her shift was starting. And of course, the topic of our conversation was the valentines cards we got today.  
  
“I got two! And guess what, one wasn’t so bad in the end! I wonder who would have written this, though…”  
  
“So, you have no idea?” Honda asked, and Jounouchi looked at him funnily. “That’s what I’ve already said! But hey – what about you?”  
  
Honda crossed his arms and looked somehow proud. “I got one with a really nice compliment on it! That person must have a fine taste; I can tell you!” he said and we all laughed.   
And while the others got deeper in conversation, my thoughts started running wild again. Even if I won’t accept it as a confession, my heart beats faster when I thought about it. Whom do I brighten every day? Did that mean that this person was rather close to me?

Absently I surveyed my friends and my heart froze with every face I examined. Imagining that Honda or Jounouchi could have written me such a card… it somehow felt gross. For Anzu, instead I felt sorry. If she really wrote that card, she was sadly too late… I wonder if she would make out that I wrote her one?

And the last face was pure wish fulfillment. Never could it be that Yami –

“Hey Yugi? You’re listening?”

His voice snapped me out of my thoughts. “Huh? Sorry, I was lost in thoughts… What were you saying?” I asked politely. He ruffled my hair in a smooth way and smiled.

“Wouldn’t have guessed it. I was asking if you got any interesting cards?”

I started to blush and it betrayed me the most obvious way. To make it worse I tried to avoid looking at my friends. They started laughing at my shyness and it caught on me, so I soon was joining their laughs.

“Soo?” Yami asked teasingly and somehow cornered me in our booth. He got so close to me we were side by side; arms and legs touching, feeling his breath on my skin. All I could see now were burning red eyes that locked with mine. It made my head spin around, thoughts running wild in my mind. Why was he so curious now? As evenly as I could I breathed and tried to ease my nerves. Hopefully he would consider my nervousness because of the cards and not because the closeness to him…

“Uhm well, I got… a compliment, a-and a challenge!” I stumbled and hoped that Yami was bad at counting…

But – as expected – he was not.

“And? I know you had three cards on your desk, so what was written down on the last?”

I sighed and looked at him defeated. Three other pairs of eyes lay on me and I started to feel uneasy. I didn’t like so much attention. But with a sigh and a low voice I said “A-and a… co-confession.”

Four styles of ‘Uuuh!’s were heard now, and with a heavy sigh I turned to them and told them my thoughts. “B-But maybe i-it is just a prank or something! It can’t to be the truth, right?”

“Oh Yugi!” Anzu said and smiled at me. “It is Valentine’s Day! It is that day of the year were you’re honest to your heart and honest to the person you gave it to. If you got a confession today you can be sure that it is most likely the truth” she said with a sweet voice. “Don’t put yourself down. Believe that someone likes you! It is commonly and nothing surprising.”

Honda and Jounouchi just nodded in agreement and my heart got a little lighter. But as I looked to Yami, who slid back to his former place and released me from my bittersweet tension, I saw a slight view of… hurt? But it vanished within seconds and he also smiled at me as he noticed my glance.  
  
“Well… then I guess I have an admirer or so” I laughed nervously.

 

* * *

 

Shortly after that. Anzu was called to work and we decided to go separate ways. Honda went to his father’s firm to help him out and Jou went home to do the housework, since Shizuka wasn’t home and his father was god knows where. Yami and I walked to my house to train our skills in Duel Monsters. There was an upcoming tournament and we both wanted to commit – and of course neither of us wanted to lose in the quarterfinals or lower.

“Do you have any clue who could have written you the confession?” Yami asked while we were walking home.

Sighing I shook my head. “No. I would never have guessed that someone could like me this way. But even when, I fear that I would reject that person…” I said.

I felt Yamis curious stare at me so I looked up to him. “Why would you reject them?” he asked cautiously. “Isn’t it a good thing to be in love?”

“Sure, but I… think I won’t have romantic feelings for this person - especially. It’s complicated… You may know what I mean?” I said and pointed at his chest. “I mean, how many love letters have you turned down because you didn’t have feelings back?”

He chuckled and it somehow made me nervous. I mean, I wasn’t sending him a confession, too – Noooo, who would I be?

I hope this conversation won’t get too embarrassing.

“Well, I think you have a point there Yugi. I’m sure you have your reasons as I have mine” he winked at me. “But I must admit, one of my cards caught my attention too. It says that I was haunting someone’s dreams. It… sounded somehow special, don’t you think?”

I shortly laughed and nodded and hoped that my poker face was rather perfect. But I could feel a hot, nervous shiver running down my spine, causing some droplets of sweat on my forehead.

“Yeah, sounds… exciting!” I nervously said and tried to engulf Yami into a new topic. I wasn’t ready to talk about my card to him in public – and I was clearly not in the mood for it!  

 

* * *

 

“I lay this card face down. Your turn, aibou.”  
  
I looked at his second face down card that was on the field and his monster in attack position. It had low attack points but his defense was strong. My monster wasn’t strong enough to beat it in defense position, and he risked now to lose the duel if I would destroy his monster…

It was a bait, obviously.

“Alright Yami. I draw” I announced and looked at my new card. A spell card, quite powerful, but also a risk. But if I won’t dare, I may lose one way or another…

“I play this spell card. With paying 500 life points I destroy your face down card” I said and noted my decrease. Currently I have 1400 life points, while Yami had 700. Losing those points hurt, but it was necessary to play my turn safe.

With an elegant move, he directed his trap card into the graveyard – it changed attack points with the defense points and if I would’ve declared an attack, I would have lost my monster and the duel in his turn.

But now I could destroy his monster.

“I declare an attack on your monster. Sorry Yami, but this was a gre-“

A chuckle interrupted my speech as he turned around his other card – again a trap card.

“I’m sorry aibou, but I fear that you also lost our duel. This card gave the same amount of damage to me as to you directly. So, with my monster having 500 attack points and yours with 1600, we both go down.”

I looked at our cards and well – he was right. I didn’t have any cards to counter it, and I couldn’t take back my attack.

I smiled. “You know, if we ever make it to the finals, we would duel us forever. This was the third draw in a raw we had now!”

Yami laughed at my outburst. “Well, then we should inform them to bring more food and drinks, because it will be a long final!” he said with a wink.

Laughing, I packed away my cards and began shuffling my deck, as my stomach screamed suddenly for food. Embarrassed, I looked down and scowled at it.

“Is someone hungry?” Yami teased and packed his deck away.

“I-I think so. I didn’t realize I got hungry while we dueled. Time flies by every time” I said and smiled shyly at him.

With a chuckle, he came across me, ruffling my hair and went down. “I’ll see what I can do. Would you mind clear up and search for a movie you want to look after dinner?” he said with a louder voice from downstairs.

“Sure!” I just yelled back and packed away the small table I set up in the middle of my room along with the two chairs. Even when my grandpa wasn’t home, I refused to duel on the kitchen table. Luckily, we had this small camping table that was never used in the cellar, along with two camping chairs that were just perfect for a good round of Duel Monsters. After that I tied up my room a bit – kicking bags under the bed, throwing clothes into a corner and packing books away – and set up Yami’s bed so he can sleep later. His father was accompanying my grandpa to Egypt to visit some friends and do some research. It wasn’t uncommon for them to leave, and to prevent Yami from feeling alone, I stayed with him during those times – at least at night. Of course, it wasn’t as comfortable as sleeping in his own bed, but it didn’t matter to Yami. He was happy that he wasn’t alone.  
  
Before I went down to join him in the kitchen, I hesitated as I looked to my schoolbag.   
  
_‘You’re brighten my every day, and that’s why I love you’_  
  
Who would have written such heartfelt lines? And who is in love with me, without me ever noticing someone that close to me? After Anzu’s reaction at Burger World, I couldn’t imagine her as the author any longer. She didn’t seem distressed or anything similar, so she couldn’t have written this card.

Or she had the most perfect poker face in the world.

But who could it be? With a heavy sigh, I made my way down to the kitchen. Knowing you have a secret admirer but you most likely know that you won’t return those feelings because you gave your heart to another person isn’t a pleasant feeling – even if I don’t know her… or him.

“Hey, why making such a sad face aibou?” Yami asked as I entered the kitchen.

“Oh, just thinking about this card…” I said with a low voice and sniffled the delicious scent coming from the stove. “You know if I ever need someone to cook for me I would most likely always choose you” I praised him as I looked around him, and hoped to change the subjects. He chuckled and handed me a spoon to taste what he was cooking. Yami have a talent in cooking, it was delicious as always.

“As if I don’t already cook for you all the time…” he said amusedly. I also laughed as I got the cutlery and placed it on the kitchen table. But it made my mood not really better. Of course, this feels… incredible with him here with me, in my house and actually living here with me – until grandpa and his father returned. It almost felt like… home.

Without him noticing, I turned around and looked at his back. No, it wasn’t almost like home. It was home.

And that was why I would turn down my secret admirer and hope that Yami would never find out my feelings for him.


	3. Chapter 3

We chatted about common things while we ate and my worries were far away while I was with him. After the main course Yami prepared a little dessert for us – even if it was only a cake from the supermarket, but it was so sweet of him to get it.

Happily, I chewed on my piece as we sat down on the couch and looked at the entrance scene of the movie. It was a normal comedy movie, nothing special and clearly no romantic plot. But it had his heartful moments at the beginning which kept me silent. Too lazy and distracted from the movie we held our plates in our hands.

In the middle of the movie, I wanted to put away our plates so we could get more comfortable. Yami was still too deep into this movie that I didn’t want to distract him. I carefully took the plate from his hands and leaned over the top of the couch to place them at the table behind us. But because of my small stature I needed to lean in him, and of course I lost my balance and bumped right onto him.

“Uuups, sorry!” I said and finished my task and placed the plates away.

“Hey, no problem” he said and moved to give me more room, but this caused me to lose my balance entirely and I fell completely on him.

A small “Uff” and a surprised “Ah!” was heard and we looked into each other’s eyes. Confident red oceans met shy waving amethyst seas and time slowed down. I knew that he had pretty eyes since the first day I met him in Egypt, and now they meant far more to me…

Neither of us said a word as we stayed perfectly still in this position, inhaling his scent and looking how his eyes moved and scanned every detail of my face – and so did I. Feeling his warmth, it drew me closer to him until my head landed on his chest, listening to his slightly increased heartbeat.

“I’m sorry” I whispered through his fabric. I expected a chuckle or something like that from him, hoping to make this situation less awkward for me. But he didn’t. I could feel how he inhaled and a soft, warm hand was placed on my neck, softly stroking over my shoulders.

“It’s okay, aibou…” he said and slung his other arm carefully around my waist. “You… want to stay this way?” he asked and his voice was unnaturally pitching on some points. Was Yami… nervous?

Slowly, I nodded and he helped me to find a better position. In the end, I sat in his lap while my head rested on his chest. I couldn’t watch the movie any longer, but I didn’t care. When I could be near to Yami this way, I… happily accepted. Even if it means that I would be crying silently while he slept next to me later that night. But to feel his warmth, his heartbeat, his breath hitting my skin… it was too tempting and comfortable to decline.

Somewhere in between Yami started to caresses my neck softly, which relaxed me so much, that I didn’t realized that the movie had long ended and we just sat there enjoying each other’s company.

But suddenly the lights went off. And not just the overhead lights, but every other electrical thing was dead. Surprised I sat up, looking at Yami with a questioning face.

Or I thought so.

“What was that?” I asked as I looked around. Even the street lamps were out!

“Seems like a black out.” Yami stated and attempted to stood up. “Let me go?” he softly asked and I stood up, nearly stumbling so he could down into the cellar.

He used his cellphone flashlight for some light. Gladly he didn’t look at me; otherwise he would saw that giant blush in my face. My cheeks were burning like fire. His words still echoed in my head and I didn’t move an inch until Yami came back.

“Yup. The fuses are still in, so we need to wait until the energy will be back on” he explained. “What do you want to do now?” he asked and I could fairly see that he was looking at me. He pointed his flashlight down to the ground so he won’t blind me, but still can see me. I shrugged and tried to remember what time it was…

“I think maybe it would be better if we head to bed. Its late and we have school tomorrow.”

Yami let out a small sigh and nodded before he signaled me to go upstairs. “But we should be keeping an eye on the electricity. Not that the TV is on all night while we are sound asleep.”  
  
He helped me to find my bedroom in the dark with his cellphone and went to the bath and brushed his teeth. In this time, I could change into my pajamas and waited until he came back. He handed me his cellphone.

“It’s funny to brush your teeth in the dark” he said amused and carefully I moved to the bathroom.

I tried to hurry because it was still a bit creepy – even as a teenager I like to have lights here and there to scare the dark away. But on the other hand I welcomed the darkness to calm my nerves.

After I was finished I stayed in the dark room silently, just looking at my slight reflection at the mirror.  

I never was… that close to him. Sure, when we watch TV or were listening to some music I leaned my head on his shoulder or vice versa, but to actually cuddle or spend some time this close didn’t happen before. I heart my own heartbeat in my ears, drumming heavily. I felt how sweat covered my hands; I begin to get terribly nervous with thinking about going back.

What would happen? Will we just lay next to each other and fell asleep? Will it be… awkward from now on every time we sit together?

A heavy sigh escaped my throat and I rubbed my face. Hopefully I will get myself together and won’t fall in love with him more than I’m actually am. I really don’t want to lose him…  
  
After I splashed cold water in my face I found the courage and returned to my room. I tiptoed and walked slowly due to the darkness and was surprised how lit up my room was.

Yami lay with his sleeping garments on his mattress and looked up through my skylight. He didn’t even look up as he spoke; but well, whom did he expect other than me?

“The sky is crystal clear tonight” he whispered merely. “The stars are shining so brightly. It’s so rarely to see with all the light pollution.”

I walked to him and lay my head in my neck, looking up and follow his gaze. He was right; the stars shone more bright than ever. Now with the black out, it came out more visibly.

“Reminds me of the nights in Egypt. They were equally bright” I whispered and smiled down at him. A sad smile came to his face when he remembered his home country.

“I miss it” he said with slight longing and looked back up.

I decided to sit down next to him on the floor. “I believe you…” I answered and try to look up again, but I couldn’t find a fitting angle without hurting my neck. I sighed in defeat and looked back to him how calmly he just watched the night sky. But he seemed to notice my fight because I heard an amused chuckle from his side.

“Why don’t you lie down next to me?” he simply said.

This caused another blush on my face, remembering the closeness we had before… But well, he was right, and if I don’t want it to be awkward now and forever, I better start with acting ’normal’… somehow, at least.

I turned around and lay down on my back to look up into the sky – and the view was maleficent; even more than from my sitting position. “Wow” I whispered in utter bewilderment. With some imagination you can ignore my window and my ceiling and believe you’re lying on the field, with nothing around except nature… and the one you love.  
  
Oh man Yugi, you’re hopeless…

“Can you see this line?” Yami broke the silence softly and maneuvered his hand in my view, drawing a line between the stars and connecting them. “I saw them as a child every night. I called them my ‘sleepy stars’ because it was my time to go to bed when I saw them.”

I squinted my eyes and looked carefully. “Is it part of a zodiac?” I asked curiously.

Yami laughed softly. “No”, was his simple and amused answer. Confused I looked at him. Even through the darkness I was able to see the amused sparkles in his eyes.

“Couldn’t it be every line of stars then?”

He again laughed softly and shrugged. “Probably?!”

I joined his laughing and I changed my view back to the sky. “It’s just wonderful to think about the fact that stars are always there, leading the way, and giving light in the darkest hours…”  
  
And he added with a barely hearable breath “Just like you…”

At first I didn’t realize it. And when I did, I didn’t fully get the meaning of it. But then…  
  
_‘You’re brighten my every day, and that’s why I love you’_  
  
As realization hit me, I turned around, unbelievably staring into fearing, loving red oceans.

“Y-You?” I asked in a breath and my heart beat faster as he simply nodded. My mouth fell open and I stared at him blankly, while inside me a storm of questions broke lose. But I was unable to ask one of them.

Yami looked calm as ever – besides his eyes. Even if Yami seemed to be the coolest man in the group, his eyes betrayed him sometimes, telling how he really felt. But he didn’t reveal it to everybody… When I think about it, he did it only for me…

A movement got me out of my thoughts as said man changed his position so he was now facing me instead of the stars. He was still silent, but the small wrinkles on his forehead told me to give him some time. Well it wasn’t that hard; I still couldn’t believe it.  
  
Yami loved me.  
  
“I…” he began but stopped as he looked into my eyes. A small sigh came out of his mouth. Did he look… defeated? Did he believe that I… didn’t share his feelings?

_Oh silly Yugi – he just confessed to you, but did he know about your feelings as well? You never told him!_

Well, that was partly true. I DID tell him – with this valentine’s card.

Think of it Yugi – how could you show him that… you love him back.  
  
I couldn’t voice it. Not now, not when Yami was about to tell me something important. I didn’t want to interrupt him in his speech the words he was searching for at the moment… But, what if I just…

Slowly I turned around so I was facing him now. He was still facing me, lost in deep thought to say the right things after his confession. He didn’t really notice my change in position. His hand was laying between us while he used his other to stabilize his pillow under his head. I looked at his hand and didn’t try to think about it much as I slowly reached forward to lay my hand above it. I tried to be gentle and not to shake that much but I couldn’t help it to shiver slightly.

It reached Yami as he snapped out of his thoughts and looked at me surprised. Time seemed to stand still while our hands touched. It wasn’t the first time we’d held hands; it was common when we were alone or back in Egypt. We did it all the time when we were on our own.

But with his confession now, and my feelings… it was different, on a whole better level. Thinking about this development I had to smile.

And this smile reached him too. The storm in his eyes calmed down a little and it changed to a loving, exciting storm.

“I… held this secret since the day we moved to Japan, you know” he began his story. “I held you special since we first met, being my ‘little brother from Japan.’ ”

We both laughed softly at this. My smile got wider and my grip on his hand a little harder.

“You know, I missed you every time you ended your call and I was so anxiously waiting for your letters then. The times around Christmas I was a common visitor at the post office, asking for your package. And I was soooo happy when I got it. Even when we grew older and you couldn’t visit anymore it was something I held special.

“But when Mum got sick, and we moved here to Japan, I got… anxious. I knew it was a decision because of the better medical situation, and also because dad had so many friends here. But I will never forget how she came to me and said ‘You can be with your little brother again’.”

A soft sigh escaped me. “Yeah. She told me the last time I saw her” I whispered and thought back when I visited his mum the last time in the hospital. I was alone with her when she told me about Yami’s excitement to be with me again. Her eyes were clear and full of joy when she thought about his son and his happiness.

I will never forget her last wish she told me.

“Did she tell you something more?” he asked, noticing that I was thinking back. It brought me back to the present. After her death we exchanged everything what she told us. But her wish I kept a secret.

“Actually… yes” I whispered and looked apologetic to him. “It was her last wish to me, and… I decided to keep it secret until the right time comes.”

“And… is it the right time now?” he asked.

I sighed. “I fear, not now… I will tell you when it is time, okay?” I asked and Yami understandingly nodded.

“Don’t be afraid; it is a wish for a lifetime” I said and smiled to him. Telling it him now would push things to far…

“It’s okay, aibou. Those were to last words she spoke to you. I appreciate it if you would keep it for you. I… didn’t tell you her last words for me either, so it’s probably fair, you know” he said and sighed.

“She knew it, somehow; that you were more for me than just my best friend or my ‘little brother’” he said and focused on our hands between us. “She was so happy for me as you announced to visit along with your grandfather. I wanted it to be perfect and cleaned my room as I never did before. She joked if I wanted to clean the complete apartment for her and I really did. And as you stood there in the doorway… I didn’t believe in love at first sight, but something changed for the better than. I couldn’t see you anymore as my little brother or my best friend. You were even more to me. And I think the way I was acting towards you betrayed me – or the fact that I didn’t stop talking about you after you left. I think that made me” he said and we both laughed.

“It’s funny” I began and stopped again. Was I able to tell him this? I blushed and avoided his gaze. Something inside held me back – but why? He confessed his feelings for me – he loved me! Everything I ever wanted from him will come true now. So why did I hesitate?

“What is funny, aibou?” he said with a slightly shaking voice. I looked up to him and I met a slightly afraid Yami. And I was the one causing these feelings to him. Oh god, this thought alone send me a shiver down my spine.

“That… the same thing happened to me” I admitted shyly and barely hearable. “I… My crush on you started as I met you again…” I confessed finally and looked away, blushing heavily.

Now it was Yami’s time to realize it and I made up his mind. I tried to breath normally and steady my heartbeat. But with only one thought the storm broke lose again. Anxiously I was waiting – and I couldn’t understand why I was so nervous. I had the easy part in this talk…

A soft and short chuckle calmed me down. “So, how about that nightmare a few weeks ago?” he softly asked and changed the position of our hands; he hold mine now in his hand and squeezed it softly.

I began smiling and looked up to him. “Wasn’t exactly a nightmare, but a dream of you… I cried because I believed that it will never come true. And it wasn’t the last dream I had” I confessed. “But it was the only dream I visibly cried. The others I tried to cry silently so I won’t wake you up…”

“Oh aibou…” Yami said and softly squeezed my hand. But he looked at me happy, so so happy.

“It hurt as you said that my card could only be a prank.” I laughed nervously. “Well, it could be possible! I mean – nobody came to me and ever told something nice, and then suddenly I got a valentine’s card with a confession!? It was too good to be true… and it still is” I said and sighed. “But I think I have to revise my speech from this afternoon. I… believe I won’t turn down my admirer now” I said with a wink. Yami began laughing and it sounded so full of love, it made me laugh too. And I felt so good. It set my insides on fire, spreading in every fiber of my body. My heart swelled in my chest that I was afraid that it would bust. And I couldn’t help but to let lose some tears of joy that were slowly running down my hot cheeks.

I was happy in love with my best friend; my big brother. My Yami.

It still sounded incredible.

A soft tug on my hand let me look up to an equally happy man. Again, he softly tugged on it and I didn’t hesitate to crawl next to him on his mattress. He welcomed me with open arms and hold me tight as he embraced me dearly. “I love you” he whispered with shaking voice into my ear. It overwhelmed me so much that I started to cry.

“I l-love you too” I confessed with a breath and sighed as I could feel his lips against my forehead.  
  
It seemed that Valentine’s day obviously doesn’t suck anymore.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we go with the last chapter of “A single card”. I was thinking about splitting it up again, but both parts alone were too short, and so it is finally finished! As I said at the beginning, the story was originally a One-Shot, but I decided to split it up. But now I’m curious – do you think that was a good decision? I would be pleased if you would tell me in the comments if you’d rather wished to read this as One, or liked the split-up version more? I’m curious and thankful for every opinion!
> 
> I hope you enjoy the last chapter!

“Good morning class” Mrs Imuchi greeted us as she entered the class. After we welcomed her as usual she looked through the classroom excitingly. “How was your day yesterday? Did anybody found his or her valentine?”

Some of us groaned, a few girls chuckled while others ignored the question. But a really big laughter disturbed the all in all easy atmosphere; Jounouchi couldn’t suppress his amusement anymore and was silenced by Honda, who looked quite embarrassed. Anzu just face palmed and shook her head, but did also smile amused at her friends.

I looked to Yami and he smiled at me lovingly, not really caring about our friends. And under the table he took my hand in his and squeezed it softly.

  
Yesterday, after we laid there cuddling on his mattress and drowning in newfound love, the light got back on. Yami and I went downstairs to check the electricity and to turn out the devices – and then decided to go back to cuddling, but this time on my bed. I never imagined it as wonderful as it was to fall asleep in his arms.

  
We discussed how to tell our friends and family the new development in our relationship as we walked to school together. My heart beats faster every time I looked at him now, knowing that he is mine…

  
It would be better and easier for us when we would tell them as soon as possible. For our family, we needed to wait until they would return from Egypt. But Yami stated that his father knew of his feelings and he was quite sure that my grandfather would also know, which made me blush.

“Was that why they joked we should move in together?” I asked and I earned a laughing Yami with a wink he simply answered.

“Who knows?”

I bet he knew!

 

* * *

  
Later that day, we met with our friends at Burger World.

“So tell me Jou, why were you laughing like mad at Mrs Imuchis class?” I asked while we walked to our usual booth with our tablets.

  
Again he began snickering like mad, which caused Honda to blush and he was obviously mad at Jou. “You know, she asked if we knew who wrote us valentines card or something similar, and our good guy Honda here” he said and wrapped an arm around his shoulders as we sat down, “did wrote one to himself!”

Yami choked on his coke. I coughed on my French fries and Anzu begun laughing.

“Why did I expect something like that!” she said out loud while Honda fought himself free of Jous grip.

“It’s not funny!” he stated while he was blushing and looking furiously at Jou. As they began fighting we started laughing and waited until they were finished. In the end Jou gave up.

“Ok, ok, you’re right. It’s not that funny!” Jou said.

  
“But why did you do that, Honda?” I asked sheepishly and he bumped back onto the bench, looking defeated.

“I knew that I wouldn’t receive a card in class, and I didn’t want to be the only one in our group that didn’t get one in Mrs Imuchis class.”

  
I looked at him with a sad expression. So my cheer that everyone of my friends did hear something nice yesterday was somehow proved wrong. “I’m sorry Honda.”

  
“Nah, don’t be Yugi – I actually got a real one yesterday via Mail! It was really nice” he said and began blushing again, dazing dreamingly into the air.

  
“Oh, for real? Did you know who wrote it?” Anzu asked curiously and Honda began blushing again.

  
“Actually yes! It was from Shizuka!”

  
With that Jou spat out the coke he was drinking at that moment. Yami held his arms up protectively, but was lucky that Jou aimed for the floor next to our table.

  
“WHAT?!” he yelled through the restaurant – and began his fighting with Honda again; this time to protect his younger sister from ‘this jerk that could never give her what she needed’.  
While they fought we were laughing again, but cautiously looking out for the manager of this restaurant, so we wouldn’t get into trouble.

  
While the tumult was still big and the focus was on Honda and Jou, Anzu tipped my foot under the table, gaining my attention.

  
“I know that one card was from you, Yugi” she said in a normal way and she smiled at me while I blushed. “I… appreciate it, and I’m happy to be a close friend of yours too.”

I sheepishly smiled back at her and just nodded. “Thanks” I simply said, feeling how Yami took my hand again under the table. As I looked up to him he smiled at me. I told him yesterday that my second card was for Anzu, and what I wrote to her. I also told him that she was somehow my ‘victim’ as long as I couldn’t confess or allow my feelings for him, but in the end I couldn’t hide it any more.

  
Anzu then silenced Honda and Jou, telling them that she would sue them for her training lessons if they didn’t stop now.  
  
“How about you Yugi? Who has written to you?” Anzu asked politely to change the focus from Honda and Jou to me – or better say to us, so they could cool their heads down.  
I started blushing and felt Yamis gaze on me. He tried to play along with them, waiting for me if I was ready to tell them.

  
But why should I hide it any longer?

  
“A-actually, I know who has written to me” I said and sighed as everyone ‘Oooed’ in excitement to the news.

  
“And? Who was it?!” Jou asked in eager excitement and forgot his tumult with his friend. I started blushing more as everyone was looking at me – except one person. We were going through this and still I felt unsure how to tell it. But surprisingly I didn’t need to think about it anymore.

  
“I wrote it.” Yami said simply and smiled lovingly down to me.

My friends were silent.

Anzu looked at us with pure happiness, knowing what it meant; Honda and Jou looked dumbstruck as ever. I looked up to him surprised with his sudden outcome.  
  
“Eh, did that mean that you pranked your best friend?!” Jou asked and Yami and I looked baffled.

“Oh man, if you have done this on purpose, this is mean! You’re like brothers, you shouldn’t play such a trick on him!” Honda lectured Yami and his redness in his face wasn’t any longer from shyness, but from anger.

  
And here I thought my friends were smart.

“N-nono, guys, you’re getting it all wrong!” I began fighting while Yami was still smirking at those too. Anzu facepalmed again and whispered a clearly hearable ‘Idiots’ while she was still smiling.

  
“But you said it could’ve been a prank on you! And Yami here-” Jounouchi gesticulated towards him.

  
“Is in love with Yugi.”

  
Jou stopped his motions and his words were swallowed down as Anzu stated that. Honda went also silent and his face color returned to normal while both guys blinked at me and Yami and then turned their head to Anzu.

  
“What?” they asked simultaneously and changed their gaze between her and us.

  
“You guys never noticed, did you? How Yami looked at him or how he was acting when Yugi was not around?” she asked and still smiled as she looked between them. Honda and Jou now exchanged a look and turned their heads to us.

  
Yami did smirk to them, while I was smiling dreamingly, gazing into to air between us, a soft heat in my face. My hand was still in Yami’s and I could feel how he softly squeezed it.

  
“You’re…” Jou began and Yami softly nodded.

  
“Yeah. I was from the very beginning. It was a tough decision, but I couldn’t keep it any longer to myself. It was a mere coincidence that Aibou thought the same thing” he said with a wink and I could feel how the heat in my face intensified. Well, thanks Yami for spoiling that so directly.

But on the other hand, he spoiled it to Jounouchi. He always needed some time…

“So Yugi is in love with you, too?” he asked in excitement.

Argh – and here I was proven wrong! I sighed and looked up. Not trusting my voice I nodded and smiled to them.

  
They were silent for a moment, looking between him and me. But it was not a judging look; more like a curious gaze.

  
“So, are you both together now?!” Honda asked cautiously. Yami and I looked at each other, hoping to get confirmation for what we’re going to say. As he smiled lovingly at me and I returned this smile, our friends sighed and laughed softly.

  
I think they don’t need an answer to this question as Yami slowly maneuvered his entangled hand with mine onto the table, stroking over it.

  
I looked into the stunned faces of my friends, happily gazing at us. “I hope it is okay for you, guys?” I asked cautiously, hoping not to offend any one of my friends with our new relationship status.

“Naaah!” Jounouchi declared loudly and smiled at me brightly. “It’s a good thing to be in love  -especially with the one you love! And as Anzu said, I think it was obvious on one point, so yeah. Don’t worry too much, pal!”

Honda and Anzu just nodded and I was relieved that my friends were cool with it.

“And what about you, Jounouchi. Who wrote to you yesterday?” Yami asked to change the focus from us back to the original subject. I sighed silently and squeezed his hand softly; thankful for the change of attention. Even if those were my friends, I appreciated not being the center of attention.  
  
“Gah! You won’t believe it, but it was from someone who was NOT in class yesterday!” he groaned and he ruffled his hair.  I raised my eyebrow and tried to figure out who it was. Anzu looked as puzzled as I did, and Honda scratched his chin in his typical manner. Even Yami didn’t have a clue who could it be. Jounouchi visibly enjoyed that we really couldn’t guess who the author of his valentine’s card could be.

Unless…

“No way!!” I yelled as I thought of the only person who wouldn’t attend class and the teachers were perfectly fine with. But Jou’s smile didn’t vanish – instead an angry frown came to his face.

“Yes way!! I couldn’t believe it either, that Mr. Moneybags himself wrote it. He didn’t even bother to hide it as I confronted him!”

“Wait – are we talking about THE Mr. Moneybag?!” Honda asked in disbelief and even Anzu was surprised as Seto Kaiba was revealed.

“Apparently yes” Yami stated bluntly and stole one of my French fries. “It surprises me that he really did it.” As soon as the words left his mouth he recognized his mistake and looked into the faces of our friends.

He was lucky that they didn’t notice his words. Unlucky for him, I did.

“What?!” I whispered to him and looked at him with big eyes. He swallowed and signaled to me that he would explain it later and if I could be polite enough to not voice it out again.  
Everything just with one look in his pitiful eyes. I nodded and changed my gaze back to my friends, that were heavily discussing why Kaiba would write a card to Jou.

“Have you ever thought about to ask him personally?” I asked after a while. Jou looked dumbstruck as I asked him this, but soon would look somehow annoyed.

“No! How? He isn’t in school and I cannot just walk into his Tower and ask him?!” he stated. “Also I don’t want to waste my time with this! I need to get a B in English literature or I won’t pass the class!”

I blinked at him. “How about asking him at the tournament next week? He will be there, and you aren’t so bad, so the chances you’ll meet him in the finals is quite high.”

He thought about this for a moment and shrugged. “Yeah, you might be right. But who knows if he wants to talk to me when I crash his deck?!”

This caused us all to laugh. Jou and his self-esteem was as twice as high as Kaiba’s tower when it comes to dueling. And after we started the topic of the tournament next week the topic of Valentine’s Day was dropped and we started to discuss new strategies and who would attend.  
  
And it wasn’t long until Anzu was called for work, so after our last predicament of who would join us in the finals, we made our way home. Halfway Yami took my hand to maneuver us through the peoples on the street – but he didn’t let go as we were in our neighborhood and it was really… lovely.

“So – what was that with Kaiba and him writing a Valentines card to Jou?” I asked instantly as we walked into the hall. He laughed and talked while he made his way into the kitchen.

“Do you remember that I played a duel against him last week?”

I laughed. “Of course I did! I would never forget how he came into the shop and rather pushed you out to test his new system for the tournament.”

“Right. Somehow while we were dueling we came to the topic of love, and that Kaiba wasn’t capable of ever loving something more than his company. I guess I hit a nerve there because he became rather personal after this, calling me a coward and that I never would find someone. I told him then that I was in love with you.”

“What?! You told him?”

“Yeah… sorry Aibou, it rather slipped out. But I distracted him long enough to decrease his life points to nearly 1000. He was out of his strategies and lost his temper and somewhere in between, he confessed that he liked Jou more than he wanted to admit. After the duel he allowed some small talk – or whatever you could call a talk with Kaiba” he laughed at this while I looked at him bewildered. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing there.

“And?” I asked, after Yami just stood there, looking at me and gazing.

“Well I told him that Valentine’s Day would be a great opportunity to tell him. At that point our talk was over and he sent me home. It also gave me the idea to write you a Valentine’s card.”

I smiled at this. “Well it worked for us. Let’s just hope that those two can figure it out without calling an ambulance.”

Laughing, Yami came to me and took me into his arms. It came so surprisingly, for a few seconds I just stood there, doing nothing.

“I-it’s still so new…” I whispered as I carefully lay my arms around him.

“I know” he whispered and sighed happily. “But we have all the time in the world to get used to it.”

 

* * *

_5 years later_

* * *

 

“Do you have the lilies?” Yami asked as I climbed out of the car.

“Yup” I said and walked to his side, taking his hand in mine.

“Dad said he would come later; his train is late” Yami explained while we walked through the gate. It gave a loudly screech as it was moved and a soft ‘clonk’ was heard as Yami’s ring made contact with the steel of the gate.

It was mid-September in Domino. It was still warm outside, but autumn was coming closer. The last days it was raining heavily and the sky was clouded, but today it was crystal clear and the sun was shining.  
“Should we settle the dinner to a later hour?” I asked as I walked next to him. “I think it would be no problem to pick up grandpa later too.”

“No, I think 6 is still a good time” he stated shortly and was silent the rest of the time. We walked under the trees, preparing ourselves again. Yami got more anxious as we turned right and approached our destination.

I squeezed his hand in comfort, knowing that it won’t get better the closer we get, and it will never be.

Soon we were there. For a moment we just stood there, looking down and lost in our thoughts. Yami let go of my hand and bend down, taking the flowers from the vase and softly laying it next to him.

“Hi Mum” he said and began cleaning the tombstone from dirt and leaves. I picked up the vase to get fresh water and left Yami alone for a moment.

Every year on her anniversary we came and looked after her grave, remembering her and telling her what happened. Yami’s dad would usually join us, but as Yami said before he was late.

So we needed to tell him the big news at dinner.  
  
The last years were kind of exciting. Kaiba’s Tournament was a long one - as we expected both of us made it into the finals, playing one draw after another. In the end it was decided that we both would be champions – and Kaiba forbid us to attend a tournament together again. But after it I rarely attend tournaments anymore. I decided to make my dream come true and to develop my own game, so I attended college and was rather occupied with it. Yami kept dueling and was still the World Champion and travelled the world, but he also took care of our game shop. Grandpa was pleasantly surprised as he announced that he would run it for him after he got the needed qualifications. It wasn’t a surprise that we looked for a college where we could both study what we wanted, so we could stay together.

As Yami had said, my grandpa knew of his feelings and it wasn’t that difficult to announce our relationship to him and Yami’s dad. They supported us where they could and they made true to what they jokingly once announced. They moved in together – but not in a way we would’ve expected it. After we graduated from college and came back home to Domino, my grandpa gave me the keys for the house, telling us that he and Aknamkanon would move into an apartment together, while Yami and me could have the house and the shop, living our dream. He would just drop by every now and then and help Yami if there was too much work to do, and we promised to look after them once in a week.

Jou really got the chance to talk to Kaiba during the tournament, and it came out that Kaiba really meant it – even if they communicated in a rather difficult way. But until now they were an equally happy couple as we were, living in Kaiba’s Mansion here in Domino. Jou also still dueled and fought for Yami’s title, but until now he hadn’t succeeded. Anzu went abroad to become a dancer in the US and after her training she returned home to dance here; she got homesick quite often and didn’t want to stay in New York City any longer. Honda now ran the company of his father. He was the first of our group that got married, and soon Jou would be an uncle.

Yeah, the last years were really exciting.  
  
I returned with the vase and placed it on the grave. Yami carefully put the lilies we bought her in and lit a candle. He looked sad, but also smiled to the letters on the stone. “Mum, I think we need to tell you something” he said and took my hand in his. I smiled encouragingly at him, but still couldn’t believe what he was going to say…

“I… asked if Yugi would stay with me until death do us part, and… he said yes. So… we’re getting married. I hope you won’t be offended that I’m going to marry my little brother here” he said with a sad smile. “I wish you could be there.”

I wrapped my arm around his waist and looked up to him. “I think you don’t need to wish for it. I believe she will be right at your side” I said and he smiled down at me.

“I know” he simply said and looked back at her grave.

We stayed a little longer and said our goodbyes, going to look after another grave. I rarely talk about my parents or their circumstances of their deaths. Yami helped me to come over it and talked with me quite often after his mother passed away, knowing what it meant to lose part of your family. But it still wasn’t easy.

As we arrived, it was obvious that my grandfather was here before, because the tombstone was cleaned and fresh flowers stood in the vase. Unlike Yami, I didn’t talk to them. We were just silent, thinking about them and telling them silently what would happen soon.

“Let’s go home” I silently whispered after a while, turning around and leaving this place. I cried over them so much, I didn’t want to do it in public. And especially now, with the new circumstances, I would miss them dearly. Yami followed me fast and laid his arm around my shoulders, feeling my trembling and my unease. I climbed into the car and fastened my seat belt as Yami got onto the driver’s seat and starting the engine.

He was lucky that he could say good bye to his mother, exchanging last wishes and thoughts before she slept for eternity. I could say good bye to them, too – but it was a different one.  
At least I could have this kind of talk with Yami’s Mum. I laughed as the thought crossed my mind, that her wish for me would come true somehow.

“What is it, Aibou?” Yami curiously asked.

“Oh, I just thought about – do you remember the night of the black out? On Valentine’s day?”

A dreamy smile came to his face while he focused on the traffic. “How could I ever forget this?” he stated and took my hand.

“I told you that your mother I and talked a bit more, and that it wasn’t the right time to tell you her wish she had for me?”

“Yes, I do. And I’m still curious what it was, but I never dared to ask you again” he stated and slowed the car down due to a red traffic light.

“I couldn’t tell you because it was indeed a wish for a life time. And I feared that if I would tell it too soon, it would push things too far” I told him and looked into his eyes. I knew that the car wasn’t the right place to tell him, but he wouldn’t wait until home now.

Not on his mother’s birthday.

“And what did she actually wish for you?”

I sighed and smiled to him, feeling his engagement ring on my finger. “She asked me to be happy, and to stay with you until you’ll meet her again. Or in other words – to stay with you until death do us part.”

He looked at me in awe with loving eyes, but soon looking back at the traffic. “This sounds so like her…” he said and took my hand while he was driving through the streets. I chuckled and enjoyed the touch, staying silent for the rest of the drive.  
  
When we got home, Yami got into the kitchen to check for the meal. We asked my grandpa and Aknamkanon to come over for dinner tonight to tell them our engagement officially. But as far as I know my grandpa already knew from Yami’s plans, and I was sure that his father wouldn’t be surprised either.

We didn’t change much after my grandpa moved out. The living room was still the living room, and my bedroom was still our bedroom. The only thing changed here were the prizes Yami and I had won through all of our tournaments – of course he has more prizes than I did, but it was important for him that I showed mine too. We also made our own dueling room where we held our cards and could duel more comfortably. We enjoyed a good duel once in a while, and Yami loved to train his skills or try his new decks against mine. We still played a lot of draws, but sometimes one of us would really win a duel. But after all, the number of wins and losses was still equal.

I still thought that it would be a bad idea to attend together again – even if I was challenged to a duel every time I was seen at a tournament I accompanied him to.

“What are you thinking about, love?” he asked as he slung his arms around my shoulders while I was looking at his last trophy.

I chuckled. “About joining again. I miss dueling in a tournament, but I don’t want to be the reason why you cannot participate.”

He kissed my temple softly. “If you want to duel then you should duel. I think I don’t need to attend every tournament now anymore, you know.”

I smiled and laid my hands upon his, expecting this answer. “I know, but I know how much it means to you. I just wished that we were allowed to attend one together again…” I said with a sigh.

“Well – if Kaiba won’t hold the next tournament, maybe we could ask for it?” he suggested and slowly maneuvered me around, so I was facing him. I still smiled and nodded.

“That would be great.”

I leaned on him and enjoyed the closeness, and by hearing his sigh I knew that he felt the same.

“Did I ever tell you what mum wished for me before she died?” he whispered softly, stroking my hair. I simply shook my head.

“Like you I didn’t want to push you… And even if you never wanted to tell it I would be okay with it” I honestly said.

“Mhmm… I wanted to tell you, but as you, I waited for the right moment.” He moved his head so he could look into my eyes properly.

“She knew how much you meant to me. And so she wished for me to stay with you, be happy… and make you mine. At the beginning I didn’t understand the full meaning of it, even if I was more interested in you. I wished to ask her what she exactly meant by that, but I didn’t get the chance…” he explained and tucked one of my blond bangs behind my ear. “But after my feelings increased for you, I understood that she meant to stay with you forever and… well, do what we’re going to do” he said and smiled lovingly at me. But his attitude changed; his eyes got serious and a sad sigh came from him. What was wrong now?

“I just hope you’ll be alright to live with me forever… and won’t come to regret the decision.”

“Why would I do that Yami?!” I asked surprised.

“Well… maybe you will one day wish for something… different. You know, we’ve been together since High school, and I was your first significant other as you were for me. Maybe you wish to… experience something else someday.”

I smiled lovingly at him and gave him a long kiss. “Silly you. I’m fairly sure that nothing like this will happen. Otherwise I wouldn’t have accepted!” I said and showed him my ring. “You’re everything I ever wanted and I’m so happy with you. In these five years I’ve never gotten the feeling that I was missing something, or wanted to experience anything else. I love my life, and I love you and I’m sure I’ll love whatever will happen in the future – with you.”

He leaned his forehead against mine and sighed happily. “You know how to comfort me the best way… thank you. I will do anything in my power to make you happy.”  
  
And he sealed his promise with a kiss.


End file.
